Why complaints about Valve’s Portal 2 ARG miss the point

Valve's alternate-reality game was played by a large number of people before …

Valve put together a comprehensive and deep alternate-reality game to get the word out about the launch of Portal 2, as if this was a title that needed an extra level of publicity. The ARG lead to a lot of speculation, people playing games in order to speed up the release of Portal 2, and a network of players coming together to try to figure out what it all meant. Now Portal 2 has been released and the game is over—we think—and there are a large number of people oddly bitter about the whole thing.

That's silly: the entire point of any alternative-reality game is to publicize something, and there was no downside for anyone. For the gamers that played along, there was much to be gained. This is why the complainers have it all wrong.

A massive sale on independent games

Let's look at one of the largest parts of this whole mess, the Potato Sack. This is a bundle of independent games released on Steam, sold at a substantial discount. The bundle included 13 games, which would have been over $150 if sold individually. During the sale, which is still going on as of publication, the price for the entire bundle is $38.72.

This wasn't a bundle of no-name titles either; the games include Super Meat Boy, a game that was on many outlets' best-of lists last year. It included Amnesia: The Dark Descent, a game with almost universal praise. It included BIT.TRIP.BEAT. The games were almost all must-have titles, and they were being sold for much less than face value. This is a huge win, even if you don't care a bit about Portal 2.

If this wasn't wrapped up in a larger marketing campaign it still would have been one of the best deals in PC gaming this year. So why are people upset? Let's dig deeper.

The games received new content

As the "main" game progressed, the titles in the Potato Sack were updated with new levels and content. If you were able to finish that content you earned Potatoes that were used to move the whole thing along. The thing is, the new content was all Portal-themed, and gave new life to the games people may have already finished. In a world where people are used to paying real money for new content for their games, these developers were giving away new content for free.

The Portal 2Toki Tori content

The organizational effort to get all these developers together, offer their games for so much less than the standard price, and then add new things to play in each title had to have been intense. Simply creating this mess at all would have been a huge undertaking, but everything went off without a hitch and players had fun trying to find all the secrets. While some claim that if another company had tried this, the backlash would have been more severe, what other company is in a position to try something this ambitious, and has the goodwill to get so many outside developers to play along?

Is this why people are mad, because gamers were given more content for free? Let's keep going.

The countdown

Valve then posted a countdown online, and the gaming press breathlessly reported that the game might unlock when it reached zero. We even hinted that you should take Friday off work to play Portal 2. We were overzealous, but then again so was every other outlet on the planet that covers games. When the countdown ended and it turned out we had to play the games in the Potato Sack to unlock the game, the reaction was less than pleasant. Despite the large amount of people who played the games to unlock Portal 2 early, the game was only released 10 hours before the expected time.

The timing seemed predetermined, with no real way change when the game would be released. This is a genuine point of contention: in the end it really didn't seem like we were able to change anything. Still, for those days we all played great independent games, shared secrets, and earned Potatoes—and it felt like we were doing something. It was fun, and gave us an excuse to play these games.

At the end, all the players that unlocked all the Potatoes were given the Valve Complete Pack for their troubles, a bundle that sells for $100 on Steam. There was some grumbling from players who already had the package—and since gamers were promised a reward for completing the task, that's a legitimate beef—but in general the entire thing played out smoothly.

Besides, you didn't have to pay attention

This is the most important bit. With people complaining that it was all just a stunt and people were silly to pay attention to it, the point remains that it was easily ignored. If you chose to not play along, nothing changed. The game unlocked a tiny bit early, a few games were sold for less money, and a few people won a prize for playing indie games. If you didn't click on the stories about a topic that made you hostile, you didn't have to be aware of any of this. Nothing was taken away from the community, and there was never a negative outcome at stake.

Speculating about what was going on was fun, a bunch of developers who have created interesting games received a lot of publicity, prices were dropped on good games, and gamers had a fun challenge over the weekend. This makes people bitter? We knew from the start that this was going to drum up publicity for Portal 2's release, but at least it did so in a creative and interesting way. Valve seems like a silly target for complaints this time around. If you find yourself upset that someone else is publicizing a game by offering a sale on other games, our best advice is easy to follow: just ignore the stories about it.

Thank you Ben. The ridiculous backlash was getting way out of hand. For those of us who actually participated, instead of standing around like entitled assholes, expecting an "early launch" handout, we enjoyed the ARG very much.

It might be worth mentioning that the "Nine" test subjects were flown to Valve for a launch party for their work on the ARG. All in all, I got a weekend of actually playing a few titles I had purchased quite a while ago. I'm sure the same can be said for many others.

I'll have to admit that I had no idea the Potato Pack ARG was going on except I saw it in the Steam store. So I don't really understand all the bitterness associated with it. It just seems like a silly bit of fun and perhaps the only reason people are so upset is that they got their expectations up. I doubt the ARG was purely for marketing and hype, rather more of a fun thing for gamers to do while they waited for Portal 2 to be released. But as with anything, some people got too into it and ended up disappointed.

I chose not to play along. Not interested. And I will also chose to wait until Portal 2 is >$30 to buy it, if at all. This article seemed like a make-work article. Too much news for such an insignificant issue.

My sense of it was that the backlash only really started when people realized the game wasn't going to be released early enough to make a difference. I was working yesterday, so I didn't get to play until I got home, just like if there had been no early release at all. I had had been hoping that I would be able to play on Saturday or Sunday, but I didn't get too stressed about it. Other people evidently did.

I chose not to play along. Not interested. And I will also chose to wait until Portal 2 is >$30 to buy it, if at all. This article seemed like a make-work article. Too much news for such an insignificant issue.

I think the problem with this kind of thing is that the people who really were looking forward to Portal 2 are the ones that might feel burned. I'm sure Valve thought the whole thing would be a fun lark.

Wow, you come off as really defensive Ben. If the criticism was so lacking in merit, why write a whole article attempting to rebut it?

Because Valve are good people, and those seeking to denigrate one of the Good Guys with their angry Internet man butthurt sense of entitlement neuroses will end up denigrating the entirety of gaming in the crossfire.

Ben, I made an account today after reading ars for years just to tell you that I think you really hit the nail on the head with this article and expressed pretty much the exact same views I had towards this whole event this week. It's ridiculous how much people hated getting free content and discounted games.

Why would anyone feel burned? I haven't seen any of the backlash, and I can't think of any comprehensible reason for someone to be upset about the ARG. Could someone explain it to me the criticism or link to an example?

I think that was a major piece missing from the article. What are the complaints you are trying to rebut?

I think the problem with this kind of thing is that the people who really were looking forward to Portal 2 are the ones that might feel burned. I'm sure Valve thought the whole thing would be a fun lark.

Quite the contrary actually. Almost every single complaint I've seen has been from people who didn't even care enough to participate in the ARG. That's the biggest reason the complaints are so out of line. The people who are taking such grave offense at this "injustice" weren't the people who they claim were "taken advantage of."

Why would anyone feel burned? I haven't seen any of the backlash, and I can't think of any comprehensible reason for someone to be upset about the ARG. Could someone explain it to me the criticism or link to an example?

I think that was a major piece missing from the article. What are the complaints you are trying to rebut?

Seems like there are people out there who would complain if somebody gave them $50 for doing nothing.... Actually, I know some people who complain about how much money they get from Welfare, now that I think about it! I find it rather odd that anybody would complain about being able to play a game early, even if it is only 10 hours early.. You still get to play it before most of everybody else!

Like I said, though, some people just like to complain. Looking back, I'm a little disappointed that I missed the whole Potato Sack thing, sounds like it was cool!

To go outside the scope of the games themselves, this might just be the inevitable backlash towards manipulative advertising. I'm not saying this was maniuplative in the same was as some viral campaigns and whatnot, but the intent is the same...get people to commit time, energy, emotional investment, or money for an unknown payoff. I think Valve ended up touching a nerve that reflects the state of advertising, even though I think the ARG itself was great for independent developers and was a good deal to boot.

My only complaint was that so few of the Potato Sack games had a Mac version. Even at the deeply discounted price of the whole package, I couldn't justify the purchase because I was aware of how many more games Windows users were getting. I would have happily participated in their whole PR campaign otherwise.

Instead, I bought Portal 2, waited until it was released, played it, and loved it. Honestly, unless you were actually disappointed with the game itself for some utterly insane reason, what is there to complain about?

Ben, I made an account today after reading ars for years just to tell you that I think you really hit the nail on the head with this article and expressed pretty much the exact same views I had towards this whole event this week. It's ridiculous how much people hated getting free content and discounted games.

I don't get all the apologists on this thread? Valve tried something that clearly some of their gamers didn't like as a marketing gimmick to drum up dales. I don't care if it was a good or bad idea I bet they don't try it again, or if they do a LOT less people may participate in. I don't hate anything but misleading marketing, which seems to be the norm now days...

It just seems like a silly bit of fun and perhaps the only reason people are so upset is that they got their expectations up.

Strongly agree.

Valve didn't make it -perfectly- clear what the rewards would be, so people were free to hope for/expect the moon...

How else to explain people upset with the Valve Complete pack?

If those who already owned the VCP knew in advance what the reward was going to be, the "winners" would have no cause for complaint.

It reminds me of all the hype about the iPad, before it was announced = all sorts of rumors on price, performance, features, etc... followed by wide-spread disappointment when the specs/features weren't what so many people "expected" - even though Apple had never promised them anything.

the entire point of any alternative-reality game is to publicize something,...

Have to disagree with your characterization of ARGs here. It is a game genre often used by advertisers and some of the largest have been advertising projects, but it's not the entire point. The entire point is that it's a game. (as I've kind of pointed out before)

I think everything would have been fine if they had actually released Portal 2 early. Instead they made it feel like all the work put in was worthless. They should have focused on the "you get a reward" instead of "the game will be released early".

I'd be very surprised if the majority of complaints are coming from people who actually participated in the ARG on any level. We had over 90k people playing Portal 2 in the first 24 hours. Yet it seemed like there was only about 10-20k or so actively participating in the GlaDOS@Home bit and even fewer during the puzzle solving part.

I didn't really help with the puzzle solving, but it was a fun to lurk on the wiki and watch people making progress on the ARG. I don't bemoan the loss of time and I think this was one of the best promotion efforts I've seen lately for a high-profile release. Especially one that didn't need this much attention. Plus it was a great way for Valve to highlight some indie games, especially when they could've easily promoted their other titles like TF2 and L4D instead.

I agree that a backlash is silly, however I disagree that "there was no downside for anyone."

Some people--maybe a lot of people--give a crap about Portal 2. Many of these people don't care about those other indie games. Lots of people wanted to see Portal 2 on their machines ASAP, so they might have felt compelled to purchase what--to them--were a whole bunch of underwhelming games that were not what they're looking for. And then, they also have to play them all weekend? That could be torture to some.

Definitely that would be a downside, I think. That said, I still stick with my first sentence, which is largely in agreement with your overall assessment (if not your logic): the backlash was silly. Anyone who wanted only Portal 2 so much that they'd spend $40 on totally miscellaneous games and then play them all weekend deserves some kind of kick to the teeth.

I think the loss of the $40 and time in exchange for what amounted to almost nothing was that kick.

I think the overall complaint is that it came off as Valve saying "if you want [game you want] sooner, then buy these other games". i.e. "pay more and buy stuff you may not have wanted to get the thing you did".

I get that the games were Indy, and awesome, and had free content, but there is at least an undertone of sleaziness about it, It's certainly not going to stop me from enjoying any of the content in question, but I did personally find that particular aspect a bit off-putting.

To go outside the scope of the games themselves, this might just be the inevitable backlash towards life as a whole. I'm not saying this was life-changing in the same way as, for example, school, but the intent is the same...get people to commit time, energy, emotional investment, or money for an unknown payoff. I think Valve ended up touching a nerve that reflects the state of entitlement, even though I think the ARG itself was great for independent developers and was a good deal to boot.

Fixed that for you.

The problem is that there was speculation, that became "we heard that...", that became "we were told that..." that became "you promised and went back on it!"

In the end, the only people who actually "lost out" were those who took the rumors they heard online as rote and went into the ARG expecting a reward of some kind - Much earlier release date, free games, etc. Those of us who took the game to be what it actually was - a game - came out very much enriched by the experience, and I for one am incredibly impressed by the effort Valve put into this.

Why would anyone feel burned? I haven't seen any of the backlash, and I can't think of any comprehensible reason for someone to be upset about the ARG. Could someone explain it to me the criticism or link to an example?

I think that was a major piece missing from the article. What are the complaints you are trying to rebut?

Seems to me that the trolls have been out in force over Portal 2. It's not a surprise really, I expect the same for pretty much every major game release, but this one seemed especially intense. No doubt there will be all sorts of hate over Mass Effect 3 and other such games, simply because it's fairly easy to troll.

There was a time yesterday when the Metacritic score for Portal 2 dropped below 5, thanks to the trolls spamming 1 star reviews.

While I passed on the whole potato thingy - have more games already than time to play - I got the new level on my Defense Grid installment. Great stuff, the silly computer made me lol again, and now I am some more excited about Portal 2. Although admittedly, I already was. Just thought I would pick it up later in life at 75% off. Maybe my excitement triggers me to already buy at -50%...

The reason people are feeling so ripped off is because they paid $40 to have Portal 2 released early. The reward for so many people buying the $40 pack and playing the games in it constantly was Portal 2 being released ten hours ahead of schedule- ten hours! That's not even half a day early, and considering several console players had already obtained the game either through piracy or lazy stores breaking the release date coupled with the endings being spoiled virally on YouTube, it's quite understandable people felt ripped off.

I think the overall complaint is that it came off as Valve saying "if you want [game you want] sooner, then buy these other games". i.e. "pay more and buy stuff you may not have wanted to get the thing you did".

I get that the games were Indy, and awesome, and had free content, but there is at least an undertone of sleaziness about it, It's certainly not going to stop me from enjoying any of the content in question, but I did personally find that particular aspect a bit off-putting.

The problem with your logic is, Valve didn't say that.

Sure, after GLaDOS@Home launched, Valve did say "help Portal 2 launch early," but the backlash came from it not launching Friday morning, before Valve said anything to the effect.

I ignored the whole thing. Even if I had preordered Portal 2 for Steam, I wouldn't have played any of these games just to get Portal 2 early. I like the Portal games, but not enough to work to play it early.

I get that the games were Indy, and awesome, and had free content, but there is at least an undertone of sleaziness about it, It's certainly not going to stop me from enjoying any of the content in question, but I did personally find that particular aspect a bit off-putting.

I think it was not so much that Valve was sleazy, so much as that The People were expecting this to be more than a marketing tactic. This may be getting a little bit meta, but everyone likes a to think they're solving mysteries and discovering meaningful secrets of life. People like things to have personal meaning to them. You get this when you connect with a great work of literature..you can even get it playing a game or watching a movie.

Even though it was largely skin deep, plenty of people impressed themselves by discovering a laundry list of high school philosophy concepts after watching the Matrix. I'm sure the less experienced you were with philosophy, the more entranced you were by this.

I didn't participate in the ARG, but I can imagine that if, at the end of the day, I didn't feel like it added to my understanding of Portal 2, or life in general.. If it didn't connect with me.. I'd feel like it wasted my time. With the Matrix, you felt like you were discovering interesting concepts on life, but maybe a lot of people felt the ARG was just letting them discover they'd been suckered into spending money on an admittedly good gaming bargain...but that's all it was. Many people are totally happy to just accept the bargain, but some people will feel like they were promised something arcanely satisfying that wasn't delivered.